Just about every HVAC contractor charges more for emergency service. If you need your furnace repaired in the middle of the night, expect to pay more. Likewise for AC repairs on a holiday weekend or plumbing repairs late in the evening. But also know this: you are not being ripped off.
There are particularly good reasons HVAC contractors charge more for emergency service. They all have to do with the costs associated with providing service outside of normal business hours. Simply put, it costs HVAC contractors more to provide emergency service. They need to pass on those extra costs in order to stay in business.
What Constitutes Emergency Service
SameDay is a Utah heating, cooling, plumbing, an electrical contractor providing service along the Wasatch Front region. Emergency services are a big part of what they do. Their technicians are on call 24 hours a day, every day of the year. So what constitutes emergency service for a company that works around the clock?
Emergency service in HVAC, plumbing, and electrical encompasses all service provided outside of normal business hours. So if 8am-6pm would be considered a normal business day, any service provided outside of those hours is emergency service.
HVAC contractors like SameDay work nights and weekends. They provide service on holidays. They will come to your home in the wee hours of the morning to fix broken pipes. But all this service outside of normal business hours costs more.
Note that there is another kind of emergency service: service that is provided during normal business hours but cannot wait. For example, a broken-down furnace in the middle of the winter cannot be put off for three weeks.
Why Contractors Charge More
SameDay and its competitors certainly prefer that all the work they do be scheduled in advance. Advance scheduling makes doing business easier. But obviously, emergencies can’t be scheduled. They are what they are. So in order to provide emergency service contractors need to go the extra mile. Doing so costs money.
Consider the following:
- Labor Costs – HVAC contractors need to make it worthwhile for employees to provide emergency service or they won’t be able to hire anyone. That means paying not only overtime, but premium wages for after hours work. Labor simply costs more.
- Obtaining Parts – Obtaining parts for emergency service can be more difficult. If parts are not available locally, they need to be special ordered and sent with priority shipping. That’s more money spent.
- Logistical Expenses – There are logistical expenses related to emergency service. For example, extra miles on a work van translates into higher fuel expenses.
- Prioritization Issues – Emergency service during normal business hours forces other jobs to be delayed. The change in priorities leaves other customers hanging. So to prevent the abuse of the emergency service, a surcharge is added to make it more expensive.
Here’s the bottom line: HVAC contractors incur extra costs in order to provide emergency services. As in any other business, their costs are added into their charges. So if they are spending more money to service customers outside of normal business hours, customers will pay more on their final bills.
From the customer’s perspective, it’s a matter of how desperately service is needed. If an HVAC, plumbing, or electrical problem is merely a nuisance, it’s probably a better deal to have the work scheduled. Emergency service should be reserved only for genuine emergencies.
Next time you need emergency heating, cooling, plumbing, or electrical services, be prepared to pay more. You’re not being ripped off. It just costs more to do business on an emergency basis.
